Santa Fe HS shooting suspect to remain in mental health facility for another 12 months
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The teenager accused of the Santa Fe High School massacre will remain in a mental health facility for another 12 months.
Dimitrios Pagourtzis was transferred from the Galveston County Jail to the North Texas State Hospital in Vernon during Dec. 2019, when he was 19 years old.
In Nov. 2019, a judge ruled Pagourtzis was incompetent to stand trial.
He was ordered "committed to and confined" to a Texas Department of State Health Services facility, the ruling stated at the time. Over that time period, Pagourtzis was set to be evaluated and treated to make him fit to stand trial. With the ruling, he won't be allowed to refuse treatment.
Tour the hospital where accused killers receive mental health treatment
An order from Oct. 2019 stated that Pagourtzis was unfit for trial, which had been moved to Fort Bend County.
Pagourtzis' mental state has been the focus of several discussions between prosecutors and defense attorneys since the May 2018 shooting that killed 10 and injured 13 others.
At one point, attorneys for Pagourtzis said his mental state had deteriorated to the point that he didn't understand the case before him.
If convicted, he faces life in prison with the possibility of parole after 40 years.
In June 2020, the parents of one of the shooting's survivors sued a website accused of selling ammunition to Pagourtzis.
Chase Yarbrough's family filed a lawsuit accusing LuckyGunner.com of illegally suppling Pagourtzis with the bullets used in the shooting.
Under federal law you must be at least 18 years old to buy shotgun ammo and 21 years old to buy handgun ammo.
The suit alleges Pagourtzis was 17 at the time, and bought both using a gift card online.
The video above is from a previous report on Pagourtzis and whether he was considered competent to stand trial.
SEE MORE:
- Santa Fe shooting suspect's mental state has 'degraded': attorneys
- Judge decides to move Santa Fe HS shooting trial
- Dimitrios Pagourtzis: What we know about the Santa Fe shooting suspect
- Bomb technicians surround home near Santa Fe High School following deadly shooting
- 10 dead, 13 injured in shooting at Santa Fe High School
- Survivors and victims' families attend emotional hearing as suspected Santa Fe HS shooter appears in court
- Dimitrios Pagourtzis doesn't remember many details of shooting at Santa Fe High School, attorneys say
- Timeline: How the deadly shooting at Santa Fe High School unfolded
